I was a very latecomer to Game of Thrones and watched seasons 1 - 7 in the three weeks before season 8 started. The advantage of that was that everything was fresh in my mind. However, that also proved a disadvantage in that I clearly remembered stuff that didn't quite work out the way it was suggested in the earlier episodes. Another disadvantage of this cramming was being able to see quite clearly that season 8 was very rushed - clearly the writers were in a tearing hurry to get this tied up, and that's a real shame because what was sacrificed was proper plot development. The very thing that made the first few seasons so good was the time and care taken to develop characters fully. Much as I enjoyed it season 8 was not nearly as satisfying as it could have been because so much was skipped over.
Despite the above I'm not one of those who hated the conclusion. Yes there was stuff in the final episode that didn't make much sense. Wouldn't Grey Worm have just killed Jon Snow (and probably Tyrion too) on the spot for murdering his queen? The wall, all but destroyed by a zombie dragon and white walkers in an earlier episode is miraculously returned to its pristine self in the blink of an eye. The Game of Thrones is finally won by the spookily annoying Bran, but there again he had to have some purpose in season 8 and really, apart from Sansa, there were no other serious contenders. Jon had descended into being a spineless sap, only redeeming himself slightly by putting an end to the nutty Daenerys. Both Jon and Daenerys' characters suffered badly I thought through the rush to bring the story to a conclusion. Their relationship was never believable anyway because not enough time was spent on developing it, but also Daenerys' morphing into the mad queen seemed to happen in an instant.
But there were also some great moments in the final episode. I loved the scene where Drogon emerges from the snow and ash to inspect Jon. Brienne writing Jamie's epitaph in the book was a poignant moment and of course Tyrion weeping for his dead siblings demonstrated yet again what a fine actor Peter Dinklage is. I could see at least 3 spin-offs emerging from the final episode. The travels of Arya, the reign of Sansa, Queen of the North and the continuiing story of Jon Snow and the Wildlings.
All good things come to an end unfortunately and, despite the shortcomings of the final season I still give Game of Thrones a 10 because it's been truly epic. I loved it and will miss it terribly but I suspect we haven't really seen the last of it.
Despite the above I'm not one of those who hated the conclusion. Yes there was stuff in the final episode that didn't make much sense. Wouldn't Grey Worm have just killed Jon Snow (and probably Tyrion too) on the spot for murdering his queen? The wall, all but destroyed by a zombie dragon and white walkers in an earlier episode is miraculously returned to its pristine self in the blink of an eye. The Game of Thrones is finally won by the spookily annoying Bran, but there again he had to have some purpose in season 8 and really, apart from Sansa, there were no other serious contenders. Jon had descended into being a spineless sap, only redeeming himself slightly by putting an end to the nutty Daenerys. Both Jon and Daenerys' characters suffered badly I thought through the rush to bring the story to a conclusion. Their relationship was never believable anyway because not enough time was spent on developing it, but also Daenerys' morphing into the mad queen seemed to happen in an instant.
But there were also some great moments in the final episode. I loved the scene where Drogon emerges from the snow and ash to inspect Jon. Brienne writing Jamie's epitaph in the book was a poignant moment and of course Tyrion weeping for his dead siblings demonstrated yet again what a fine actor Peter Dinklage is. I could see at least 3 spin-offs emerging from the final episode. The travels of Arya, the reign of Sansa, Queen of the North and the continuiing story of Jon Snow and the Wildlings.
All good things come to an end unfortunately and, despite the shortcomings of the final season I still give Game of Thrones a 10 because it's been truly epic. I loved it and will miss it terribly but I suspect we haven't really seen the last of it.